Drunk
by Song to Fly
Summary: Just because he's drunk, doesn't mean he doesn't mean what he says.


She finds him sitting on a barstool, one of his hands lifting his head while the other one's fingers are around a glass. She's so relieved she found him that she forgets about the surroundings, and it's only then that she notices a strawberry blonde girl sitting next to him.

She wonders why she didn't see her earlier. Her hair is slightly longer than Petra's, as it lands on her shoulders, but their locks share the same colour. She knows the woman's talking to him by the way her eyes are solely on him, both of her hands cupping her own chin while her lips move slowly, forming words only Levi can hear. His eyes are focused on them, and from time to time he narrows them further and frowns. When that happens, he lifts his glass and drinks whatever it is in it, arching his head until Petra actually sees his Adam's apple stretch the skin of his neck, and then he drops the glass on the bar with a thud. The woman sights every single movement of his, and drinks some more, as if drinking his features in isn't enough.

Levi doesn't talk at all, his lips never move, he just stares. Petra starts suspecting he's not in his right state of mind, and even if nothing happens and she's not sure if the two of them know each other or not, she contemplates the idea of interrupting and taking him with her.

It's only then that she remembers the fact that she's standing in the doorway, blocking the passage. She blushes a bit and decides she should sit before doing anything else.

When she finally finds a table that's close enough to them, she sits and gazes at them again. Levi would have noticed Petra, and that only reinforces the idea of him being… drunk. If she weren't here, if she hadn't been so worried about him after their return from the Expedition earlier, given how he acted for the rest of the evening, she would have giggled at the idea of her Corporal being drunk. But she was here, and he did seem unwell after their comeback and acted weirdly towards every one of his Squad, except her. He didn't snap at her, swore, told her to shut the fuck up and leave him alone. He would just grit his teeth and then leave himself.

She was getting herself ready to sleep when she heard a loud "Fuck you!", and the door shutting with a loud noise. She recognized his voice, and she guessed the "you" was referring to Hange, she had a sad smile at the thought of her friend wanting to share some new-found hypothesis, completely oblivious to the short man's mood. For some reason, Petra didn't find it in her to sleep when he heard that, so after what seemed an eternity, she glanced at the clock ticking on the front wall of her room, indicating that, indeed, it was very late and the Corporal should have returned by now.

She lifted herself up from the bed and changed quickly, putting on the simple white pants and shirt they wore under all of the harnesses, jacket, and classic green cloak. When she got down, she found Hange in the main hall, outspread on the floor, hugging some papers. She put her hand on her mouth to muffle her laugh and knelt beside her, analyzing her calm sleeping face, mouth slightly open. Gripping one of the taller woman's arms and sneaking it around her neck, Petra stood slowly up to lift her with her.

"You're so heavy Zoë."

"You fmell fo nife Pet…" said Hange sleepily, and Petra chuckled.

"You're incorrigible." She replied, amused.

"You lofe me for that… zzz…"

"I love you for so many reasons, Zoë, and this wasn't on my list but oh well…" she shrugged, and actually thought only Zoë could make her smile all the time.

Hange was in her bed before Petra left, searching for Levi.

The sight of the other woman's hand landing on Levi's lap brutally brings her back to reality, and she quickly glances at the man's face to gauge his reaction, only to see his neck muscles tense. She watches as he quickly gulps another glass and she decides it's enough for him. The woman is leaning in, and he only gazes at her with cloudy, blurred, tired eyes.

How that seems so out of character of him frightens Petra a little bit, but then she reminds herself she can say she knows him a bit more than many, and she knows even the Strongest has moments of weakness. She knows he was trying to find an escape by shutting the door behind him and drinking, because the weight of the dead on his shoulders feels so heavy after returning from another one of their fruitless expeditions.

She knows all of it.

So she stands up and strides towards them, only to stop next to him and smoothly peck him on the cheek before blushing furiously. She doesn't know why she did that, but she guesses she wants the woman to know she can't cross the line she wanted to cross anymore. Because it can't be consensual, _not_ because she's jealous.

"Hi, Levi." She says in his ear, and something deep within him wakes up as his eyes widen a bit at her.

"Petra…" he whispers, and for the first time he says something.

The other woman just stares in utter silence, taken aback by the petite woman's sudden entry.

"Let's go home ?" she asks while helping him stand at the same time. "Have a nice night, ma'am."

He doesn't say anything, he just tries to make it easier for her and snakes an arm around her neck. He nearly falls at first, he stumbles at first, and she realizes he really did abuse of alcohol. She smells it on him and can only sigh expressing her content at the thought of going back to their Headquarters.

"You smell nice, Petra…" he mutters on their way, and it makes her cheeks feel hot under her skin and she thinks she's blushing because of his words.

"With all my due respect, Corporal, you're drunk." She only says, finding it hard not to say anything when he's just waiting for an answer given the look he gives her.

"Yeah, I guess I might be…"

She smiles and for a few moments he's silent, walking awkwardly next to her.

"You're not my mom, you know… I can take care of myself."

She ignores this comment, rolling her eyes with a small smile.

"We're nearly there."

And she can discern the form of the building from afar, the empty and dark streets giving her a sense of discomfort. Not that she's scared, but she wants to avoid any form of accident as this day has brought her enough troublesome events for a whole week.

She slowly unlocks the door and steps in, her arm around the black haired man's waist for support. She turns to close the door when he trips again, drawing her to the ground with him before she catches him with her other arm around him, preventing them from hitting the ground. When he recovers some of his balance she finally closes the door and heads up for his room where she, at least, lets go of him. Near the bed, that is. He lets himself fall on the bed and his head turns to her small form trying to take off his boots.

"You're _so_ fucking beautiful."

"Corporal, you're very drunk." She doesn't blush this time, she knows he is drunk.

"I mean it."

"Oh why thank you." she says with her head wagging, finally getting rid of his boots.

She reaches out for a blanket next to him and drapes it over his body, and when she's happy with the sight in front of her, him in his bed, under a sheet, tired and about to get the rest he deserves, she wishes him good night and then gets back on her feet.

But his hand around her wrist makes her understand in disbelief he's not sharing her point of view.

"Yes, Corporal ?" she voices, embarrassed, this time.

"Stay with me, I might mess things up again."

"I'm sorry?" the petite woman asks, not sure if she understands well.

"Yeah, you should be for following me… You followed me, right?"

And now, she's frowning. This man is seriously a pain in the bum even when he's drunk.

"No, I did not."

"Who fucking cares anyway, just stay with me. Stay."

She blinks at him a few times, her back straight and her muscles tense. And then she feels herself relax, releasing a breath she wasn't aware of holding back. She gives him a small smile, shakes her head and his eyes analyze her every action and follow her body as she kneels down on the floor to be at the same level as him again.

"Corporal, you should rest. We had a very long day, and you went out, drank a bit too much. You do not mean what you say, and you probably don't even know what you say. I am going back to my room to do the exact same thing you should do: sleep. Tomorrow we have reports to hand back, and there will also be training. You should rest."

He doesn't nod, just blankly gazes at her, and she takes it as a sign he understood. Only then does she stands up again and turns away from him, slowly closing the door behind her as she leaves the room.

She's more than happy when she finally feels the mattress under her tired body, and the sheets around her curves. Petra releases a sigh and she thinks that if she could, she would purr at the moment.

She's drifting away and sleep is slowly taking her to the land of dreams when she hears the doorknob move.

"What…"

And before she can do anything because of her eyelids being way too heavy and her body aching for rest, she feels arms around her waist, and a body pressed to her back.

"I told you to fucking stay but you… you wouldn't listen."

She doesn't have the strength to answer and her ideas are way too clouded by sleep.

When he wakes up and feels a body pressed against his, he already knows who that is, and even if his head hurts like hell, he's annoyed. Annoyed because he is Levi and she is Petra and things shouldn't have ended like this. Annoyed at him because according to their surroundings he was in her room, but he knew that, he still has glimpses from yesterday's events. He looks down at her face on his torso, her hair messy, and notices how peaceful she looks, and for a moment he's not so annoyed anymore. He never noticed her freckles and the length of her eyelashes before this and absent-mindedly he murmurs "I meant it when I told you you're beautiful.".

He lays there for some time, and when he gathers enough strength he slowly lets go of her waist and untangles himself from her limbs.

He leaves her room without sparing her sleeping form a glance, because hell, for one he's ashamed of what he's done, and two he'd be tempted to go back next to her, where he's warm.

She wakes up one or two hours later, and she's alone in her small bed.

She can smell alcohol on her pillow, though.


End file.
